Super Bowl Bets Range Over $16 Billion Thanks To Legal Sports Gambling

Sports fans are overly excited about one of the biggest games of the year happening on Sunday, one group of fans in particular.

Sports betters. This year’s Super Bowl will feature the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles and KBMC News reports over $16 billion is expected to be wagered on the the big game in Glendale, Arizona, where sports gambling is legal for the first time. Predictions from the American Gaming Association expects 50.4 million Americans to have at least one bet this year.

AGA President and CEO Bill Miller made a statement, according to KBMC News, saying he feels the Super Bowl highlights the benefits of the habit. “Every year, the Super Bowl serves to highlight the benefits of legal sports betting,” Miller said. “Bettors are transitioning to the protections of the regulated market, leagues and sports media are seeing increased engagement, and legal operators are driving needed tax revenue to states across the country.”

With this year’s prediction almost doubling last year’s, more states are cashing in on bets. Thirty-three states, including Washington, D.C. have legal betting. According to Axios, Arizona is No. 10 in reported accepted wagers. New Jersey comes in at No. 1 with over $33 billion, and the gambling capital of the world, Nevada, holds the second place title with $29.5 billion. Eagles fans can get in on the fun, too, as Pennsylvania came in third place with $18.9 billion.

The fun stops for Chiefs fans as betting in the Show Me state. Fans will have to travel to the neighboring state of Kansas just to bet on their favorite team. Missouri is one of eight states to submit bills and legislature hoping to make sports gambling legal. Besides Missouri, South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky and mega sports state, Texas, have yet to jump on the betting bandwagon.